Gun Control

The mass shooting in Orlando, Florida reignited the debate over gun control in the House and Senate. On the House side, Democrats took control of the House floor Wednesday morning and disrupted floor consideration of the FY17 Financial Services spending bill with a sit-in while demanding action on gun control legislation before the recess. Democrats wanted votes on bills that would ban people on the terrorism watch list from buying guns and would tighten background checks. House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-WI) refused to allow a floor vote and called for a motion to adjourn that passed on a party line vote of 234 to 173 with one Republican (Dold) voting against the motion.

On the Senate side, the Senate voted on four gun control amendments early in the week, and as expected, none garnered the 60 “yea” votes needed to proceed. The amendments were as follows:

Amendment 1: Offered by Sen. Grassley (R-IA)

Vote 53 – 47

The amendment proposed tightening up and pushing more resources to improve the availability of records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, but did not expand it. Currently background checks are only required by federally licensed firearm dealers. Sales online, at gun shows, or from friends/relatives are exempt from background checks.

Amendment 2: Offered by Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT)

Vote 44 – 56

The amendment proposed expanding mandatory background checks to all gun sales (online, gun shows, and private sales).

Amendment 3: Offered by Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX)

Vote 53 – 47

The amendment would prevent sales of guns to suspected terrorists if a judge found probable cause that the person trying to buy the gun is involved in terrorist activities (in other words, requiring a court order for a gun sale to be blocked). The government would have to prove that a would-be gun purchaser on an FBI terrorist watch list does have ties to terrorism to block the sale of the gun.

Amendment 4: Offered by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)

Vote 47 – 53

The amendment would have empowered the Attorney General at the Department of Justice to block sales of guns to people who are on terrorist watch lists, then let them challenge the denial later.

Later in the week, the Senate considered a bipartisan amendment offered by Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) that would restrict gun purchases for those on the no-fly list, but allow those denied purchasing a gun the right to appeal in court with their legal fees paid if they win. The amendment was endorsed by Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and would have done the following:

1. Give the Attorney General (AG) the authority to deny firearms sales to individuals who appear on the No Fly List or the Selectee List (people who can fly but must receive additional screening before boarding a plane).
2. Provide a process for Americans and green card holders to appeal a denial in U.S. Court of Appeals and to recover their reasonable attorneys fees if they prevail.
3. Set forth a procedure for protecting classified information during the appeal.
4. Protect ongoing FBI counter-terrorism investigations by giving the AG the discretion to allow gun sales to go forward to individuals covered by this Act.
5. Include a “look-back” provision that ensures prompt notification to the FBI if a person who has been on the broader Terrorism Screening Database (TSDB) within the past five years purchases a firearm.

Cosponsors of the amendment included:

Republicans:

Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH)

Sen Jeff Flake (R-AZ)

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC)

Democrats/Independents:

Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM)

Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND)

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA)

Sen. Angus King (I-ME)

Collins’ amendment received 52 votes in favor in a test vote (52 voted against a motion to table). It is unclear right now if Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will put the amendment to a real vote. The Senate also voted on an amendment offered by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) that was intended to be more palatable to Republicans. The amendment was tabled by a vote of 67 to 31. It would have authorized the Attorney General to delay or deny the transfer of firearms and explosives and issuance of Federal firearms and explosives licenses and permits to known or suspected terrorists.

FY17 Appropriations

Both the House and Senate are beginning to acknowledge that a stopgap funding mechanism for some or all of the FY17 spending measures will be necessary in order to avoid a government shutdown beginning Oct. 1. House Democrats are advocating for a stopgap that doesn’t extend beyond December, while some Republicans are looking to extend it into next year.

House

Floor

Before the Democratic sit-in disrupted the House floor action on the FY17 Financial Services spending bill, House Republicans began asking members to commit their support for appropriations bills if their amendments were adopted. They defended their new approach as an effort to ensure that Democrats aren’t offering amendments to sabotage the annual spending bills. Democrats argued that they cannot be expected to support a bill’s final passage just because they get an amendment accepted. The House was slated to consider as many as 70 amendments to the FY17 Financial Services spending bill before the disruption. Consideration may resume when the House returns July 5.

House FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Bill Text:

https://www.congress.gov/114/bills/hr5485/BILLS-114hr5485rh.pdf

House FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Report Language:

https://www.congress.gov/114/crpt/hrpt624/CRPT-114hrpt624.pdf

Amendments Offered:

https://rules.house.gov/bill/114/hr-5485

White House Statement of Administration Policy:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/legislative/sap/114/saphr5485r_20160621.pdf

Homeland Security

The House Appropriations Committee marked up its $41.1B Homeland Security Appropriations bill this week and reported it out by voice vote. The bill provides an increase of $100M above the FY16 enacted level and $432M above the President’s FY17 budget request. In addition, the bill includes $7.3 billion – the same as the President’s request – for disaster relief and emergency response activities through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).The committee had postponed the full committee markup for a week after the Orlando shooting giving them time to propose changes in light of the incident.

The following amendments to the bill were approved by the full committee today:

• Carter – The amendment made technical and other noncontroversial changes and additions to the report. The Manager’s amendment also includes an additional $49 million for the FEMA “Countering Violent Extremism/Complex Coordinated Terrorist Attacks” state and local grant program, and requires the Secretary to submit a report on the assessment used by DHS to determine grant allocations to high-risk urban areas.  The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.
• Aderholt – The amendment restates current law prohibiting federal funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to provide for abortions, except in certain life-threatening cases, rape, and incest. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 29-15.
• Harris – The amendment allows returning non-agriculture temporary workers (H2B workers) who have previously been a part of the program in the prior three years to not be counted towards the FY17 H2B cap. The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.
• Culberson– The amendment requires ICE to detain Priority 1 and Priority 2 illegal aliens. The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.
• Amodei – The amendment adds bill language to expand the Public Private Partnership program – allowing up to five ports of entry to pay the salaries of up to five Customs and Border Protection officers. Current law only allows for overtime to be paid. The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.

During the markup, House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Nita Lowey (D-NY) offered an amendment banning gun sales to people on the terror watch list. The amendment was rejected by a vote of 16 to 31.

House FY17 Homeland Security Appropriations Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-fc-ap-fy2017-ap00-hsecurity.pdf

House FY17 Homeland Security Appropriations Report Language:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-114-hr-fy2017-hsecurity.pdf

House FY17 Homeland Security Appropriations Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394583

State Foreign Operations

The House State Foreign Operations Appropriations Committee postponed marking up its $52B FY17 spending bill on Thursday after the Democrats’ sit-in on the House floor.

House FY17 State Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-stateforop-subcommitteedraft.pdf

House FY17 State Foreign Operations Appropriations Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394623

Senate

Floor

The Senate began consideration of its $56.3B FY17 Commerce, Justice, Science appropriations bill on the Senate floor this week but did not complete action. In addition to the gun control amendments mentioned above, the Senate voted on a controversial amendment offered by Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) that would give the Federal Bureau of Investigation the authority to access a person’s internet browsing history, email account data, and other communications without a warrant in an attempt to identify “lone wolf attackers” like the Orlando shooter who killed 49 people. The Senate may resume consideration of the measure next week.

Senate FY17 Commerce, Justice, Science Bill Text:

https://www.congress.gov/114/bills/s2837/BILLS-114s2837pcs.pdf

Senate FY17 Commerce, Justice, Science Report Language:

https://www.congress.gov/114/crpt/srpt239/CRPT-114srpt239.pdf

FY17 Military Construction-Veterans Affairs and Zika Virus Funding Conference Agreement

Republican House and Senate conferees on the FY17 Military Construction-Veterans Affairs and Zika Virus emergency spending bill reached agreement on a conference report this week. The House voted on the conference measure early Thursday morning and passed it by a vote of 239 to 171 with two Republicans (Amash and Buck) voting against the bill and six Democrats (Ashford, Cuellar, McNerney, Peters, Peterson, and Sinema) voting for it. The legislation now heads to the Senate where Senate Democrats are saying there won’t be the 60 votes needed to invoke cloture. Senate Appropriations Ranking Member Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) said that she would not support the conference report because of the limitations the bill places on birth control services as well as the inclusion of a pesticides policy rider. A cloture vote is scheduled for Tuesday, June 28. Even if the Senate passes the conference report, White House aides said that the President would veto the measure over objections to its offsets, restrictions on contraceptive services, and rolling back of certain clean-water protections.

The Conference Report includes $1.1B for domestic and international efforts to fight the Zika virus and prevent it from spreading. The $750M in offsets come from $107M in unspent Ebola funds, $100M in in unspent HHS funds, and $543M in funds that were slated for health exchanges in U.S. territories that were never set up.

Conference Bill text:

http://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20160620/CRPT-114HRPT-HR2577.pdf

Joint Explanatory Statement:

http://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20160620/114-CRHR2577-JES.pdf

House Zika Virus Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/06.22.16_zika_conference_report_-_summary.pdf

House MilCon-VA Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/UploadedFiles/06.22.16_-_FY_2017_Military_Construction_VA_Conference_Report_-_Summary.pdf

Senate Majority Summary:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/conference-agreement-reached-on-military-construction-and-veterans-affairs-zika-supplemental-appropriations

FY16 vs. FY17 302(b) Allocations

*Includes Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding.

FY17 Appropriations

House

Floor

The House passed its $575.8B FY17 Department of Defense appropriations bill on Thursday by a vote of 282 to 138. Forty-eight Democrats voted for the measure while six Republicans (Amash, Duncan, Jones, Labrador, Massie, and Mulvaney) voted against it. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a Statement of Administration Policy stating that they would recommend that the President veto the measure in its current form over the redirection of Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funds as well as several policy provisions (BRAC, Guantanamo Bay Detainee restrictions, etc). The bill, as passed by the House, only provides enough OCO funding for war operations through April 30, 2017, which would require the new President to submit a request for supplemental appropriations soon after being sworn in to office. An amendment offered by Rep. Rick Mulvaney (R-SC) restricting OCO funding to actual war needs was rejected by a vote of 306 to 112.

White House Statement of Administration Policy:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/legislative/sap/114/saphr5293r_20160614.pdf

Homeland Security

The House Appropriations Committee was scheduled to mark up its $41.1B Homeland Security Appropriations bill this week, but postponed the markup after the shooting in Orlando. Committee members cited the potential need to consider additional resources the Department of Homeland Security might need to combat violent extremism in the wake of this tragedy. The new markup has been scheduled for 10:30 am on Wednesday, June 22.

House FY17 Homeland Security Appropriations Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-fc-ap-fy2017-ap00-hsecurity.pdf

House FY17 Homeland Security Appropriations Report Language:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-114-hr-fy2017-hsecurity.pdf

Financial Services

The House Appropriations Committee marked up and reported out its $21.7B FY17 Financial Services spending bill by a vote of 30 to 17. The markup included votes on a dozen contentious amendments regarding securities regulation, insurance negotiations, and more. The bill provides annual funding for the Treasury Department, the Judiciary, the Small Business Administration, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and other related agencies.

The full committee adopted the following amendments to the bill:

Rep. Crenshaw – The manager’s amendment makes technical and noncontroversial changes to the bill and report. The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.

Rep. Fleischmann – The amendment revises the definition of a high cost mortgage and mortgage originator as those terms apply to manufactured housing. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 31-17.

Rep. Wasserman Schultz – The amendment provides an additional $1.3 million for the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s “Virginia Graeme Baker” Pool and Spa Safety Act grant program, offset by a cut to the General Services Administration’s Operating Expenses account. The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.

Rep. Culberson – The amendment prohibits funding for the IRS to audit a church unless the audit is approved by the IRS Commissioner, reported to the tax committees, and takes effect 90 days after such notice.  The amendment was adopted on a vote of 31-17.

Rep. Palazzo/Rep. Cuellar – The amendment prohibits funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to finalize or implement a rule that would restrict payday lending until the CFPB completes a report, with public comment, on the impact of the rule on populations with limited access to credit, and until it identifies existing credit products available to replace the current sources of short-term, small-dollar credit. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 30-18.

Rep. Kaptur – The amendment restores mail delivery standards to the July 1, 2012 level. The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.

Rep. Rigell – The amendment prohibits funds for an executive order (EO 13673) that requires federal contractors to comply with burdensome labor standard reporting requirements that could hurt their contracting ability, without due process. The amendment also requires an analysis and impact statement on the new standards before they are allowed to continue.  The amendment was adopted on a vote of 29-19.

Rep. Harris – The amendment prohibits funding for abortions through OPM-negotiated “multi-state qualified health plans” offered under Obamacare. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 30-17.

House FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-fc-ap-fy2017-ap00-fservices.pdf

House FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Report Language:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-114-hr-fy2017-fservices.pdf

House FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394563

Interior and Environment

The House Appropriations Committee approved its $32.1B Interior and Environment Appropriations bill by a vote of 31 to 18. The legislation includes funding for the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Forest Service, the Indian Health Service, and various independent and related agencies. The bill provides $32.095B, $64M below the FY16 enacted level and $1B below the President’s budget request. Included is $480M to fully fund “Payments in Lieu of Taxes” (PILT) – which provides funds to local communities with federal land to help offset losses in property taxes – and $3.9B for the Department of the Interior and U.S. Forest Service to prevent and combat wildfires. Democrats on the committee used the markup to push for emergency funding to combat the Zika virus, address the water contamination issue in Flint, MI, and to strip the bill of 33 environmental policy riders.

House FY17 Interior and Environment Appropriations Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-fc-ap-fy2017-ap00-interior.pdf

House FY17 Interior and Environment Appropriations Report Language:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-114-hr-fy2017-interior.pdf

House FY17 Interior and Environment Appropriations Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394564

Senate

Floor

The Senate considered its $56.3B FY17 Commerce, Justice, Science appropriations bill on the Senate floor this week, but was stopped by a Democratic filibuster on Wednesday that lasted nearly 15 hours. Democrats pushed for floor votes on gun control measures, and claimed partial victory by securing two floor votes – one from Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) ensuring that all individuals who should be prohibited from buying a firearm are listed in the National Instant Criminal Background System and require a background check for every firearm sale (closing the gun show loophole), and another amendment offered by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) authorizing the Attorney General to deny requests to transfer a firearm to known or suspected terrorists. The Senate will also vote on an amendment from Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) to improve the availability of records to the National Instant Criminal Background System and another amendment from Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) for Securing our Homeland from radical Islamists by Enhancing Law Enforcement Detection (SHIELD), which would require a court order for a gun sale to be blocked. The Senate will vote on these amendments on Monday evening. With no bipartisan agreement in place, neither side is expected to get the 60 votes required under Senate rules to advance the measures. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) is working on an amendment that would restrict gun purchases for those on the no-fly list but allow those denied purchasing a gun the right to appeal in court with their legal fees paid if they win. Collins would also include a “five-year look-back” that would notify the FBI if anyone who was previously on the no-fly list purchased a gun.

Financial Services

The Senate Appropriations Committee marked up its $22.4B FY17 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill in subcommittee and full committee this week. The bill funds the Department of Treasury, Small Business Administration, the federal judiciary, the Internal Revenue Service, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and a variety of independent federal agencies. The $22.4B measure is $1B below the FY16 enacted level. The bill largely avoided “poison pill” policy riders, which was reflected in the 30 to 0 vote to report the bill out of committee. During full committee consideration, the committee adopted an amendment lifting the ban on travel to Cuba. The committee also approved amendments allowing U.S. banks to extend credit to Cuban buyers of U.S. agriculture goods and allowing aircraft to refuel in the U.S. on flights to and from Cuba.

Senate FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Bill Text:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-financial-services-approps-bill-text/

Senate FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Report Language:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-financial-services-approps-report-language/

Senate Majority Summary FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Bill:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/appropriations-committee-approves-fy2017-financial-services-and-general-government-appropriations-bill

Senate Minority Summary FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Bill:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/fy17-fsgg-full-committee-markup-bill-summary

Interior and Environment

The Senate Appropriations Committee marked up its $32.03B FY17 Interior and Environment Appropriations bill in subcommittee and full committee this week. The bill funds the Department of Interior, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Geological Survey, Office of Surface Mining, Indian Health Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Forest Service, the Smithsonian, and a number of other agencies. The Senate bill is $125M below the FY16 enacted level and $1.1B below the President’s FY17 budget request. The bill was approved by a vote of 16 to 14. Democrats objected to the inclusion of several “poison pill” policy riders in the bill that would undo Obama administration environmental regulations.

Senate FY17 Interior and Environment Appropriations Bill Text:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-interior-approps-bill-text/

Senate FY17 Interior and Environment Appropriations Report Language:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-interior-approps-report-language/

Senate Majority Summary FY17 Interior and Environment Appropriations Bill:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/committee-approves-fy2017-interior-environment-appropriations-bill

Senate Minority Summary FY17 Interior and Environment Appropriations Bill:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/fy17-interior-and-environment-full-committee-bill-summary

Zika Virus Funding Conference

With just one week left before the House adjourns for the July 4^th recess, conferees on the Zika virus funding bill appear to be closer to striking a final deal. They met publicly on Wednesday, but the 15-minute session didn’t demonstrate a lot of progress on the two main issues. They still need to work out agreements on how much emergency funding is needed, and whether or not the funding should be offset with cuts to other programs. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said that the House could vote on the final conference agreement next week if a final package is agreed to by the conferees. With reports of three babies in the U.S. having been born with Zika virus related birth defects, the pressure is on Congress to negotiate a final emergency spending agreement.

FY16 vs. FY17 302(b) Allocations

*Includes Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding.

FY17 Appropriations

House

Floor

The House passed its $3.5B FY17 Legislative Branch appropriations bill on the floor this week by a vote of 233 to 175 after contentious partisan debates over immigration and other divisive issues. Eager to complete its FY17 spending bills, the House changed its rules to restrict amendments rather than considering the bills under open rules. This structured amendment rule allowed the House Rules Committee to not allow an amendment offered by Rep. Sean Maloney (D-NY) that would prohibit federal contractors from discriminating against gay and transgender employees (the same amendment that killed the FY17 Energy and Water bill on the House floor last month). The rule was approved on a mostly party-line vote of 237 to 182. One Democrat (Rush) voted for the rule and three Republicans (Brooks, Jones, and Massie) voted against it. The FY17 Defense Appropriations bill could be on the House floor next week. The House Rules Committee will meet on Tuesday at 3 PM to consider the bill.

Financial Services

The House Appropriations Committee approved its $21.7B FY17 Financial Services spending bill in full committee by a vote of 30 to 17. The bill provides annual funding for the Treasury Department, the Judiciary, the Small Business Administration, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and other related agencies.

The full committee adopted the following amendments to the bill:

1. Crenshaw – The manager’s amendment makes technical and noncontroversial changes to the bill and report. The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.
2. Fleischmann – The amendment revises the definition of a high cost mortgage and mortgage originator as those terms apply to manufactured housing. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 31-17.
3. Wasserman Schultz – The amendment provides an additional $1.3 million for the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s “Virginia Graeme Baker” Pool and Spa Safety Act grant program, offset by a cut to the General Services Administration’s Operating Expenses account. The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.
4. Culberson – The amendment prohibits funding for the IRS to audit a church unless the audit is approved by the IRS Commissioner, reported to the tax committees, and takes effect 90 days after such notice.  The amendment was adopted on a vote of 31-17.
5. Palazzo/Rep. Cuellar – The amendment prohibits funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to finalize or implement a rule that would restrict payday lending until the CFPB completes a report, with public comment, on the impact of the rule on populations with limited access to credit, and until it identifies existing credit products available to replace the current sources of short-term, small-dollar credit. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 30-18.
6. Kaptur –The amendment restores mail delivery standards to the July 1, 2012 level. The amendment was adopted on a voice vote.
7. Rigell– The amendment prohibits funds for an executive order (EO 13673) that requires federal contractors to comply with burdensome labor standard reporting requirements that could hurt their contracting ability, without due process. The amendment also requires an analysis and impact statement on the new standards before they are allowed to continue.  The amendment was adopted on a vote of 29-19.
8. Harris– The amendment prohibits funding for abortions through OPM-negotiated “multi-state qualified health plans” offered under Obamacare. The amendment was adopted on a vote of 30-17.

House FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-fc-ap-fy2017-ap00-fservices.pdf

House FY17 Financial Services Appropriations Report Language:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-114-hr-fy2017-fservices.pdf

Homeland Security

The House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its $41.1B spending bill this week and will mark it up in full committee next Tuesday. The bill provides an increase of $100M over the FY16 enacted level and $432M above the President’s budget request. In addition, the bill provides $7.3B for disaster relief and emergency response activities through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). More specifically, the bill provides $11.2B for Customs and Border Protection, $5.9B for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, $7.6B for the Transportation Security Administration, $1.8B for the National Protection and Programs Directorate, $10.3B for the Coast Guard, $1.9B for the Secret Service, and $119.1M for E-Verify. The bill also includes provisions prohibiting the use of funds to transfer or release detainees from Guantanamo Bay, denies the administration’s request to increase TSA passenger fees, and withholds 20% of funds from all DHS HQ staffing accounts until budget justification information is provided.

House FY17 Homeland Security Appropriations Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-hsecurity-subcommitteedraft.pdf

Senate

Floor

This week Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) filed a motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to the FY17 Commerce, Justice, Science appropriations bill. The Senate will proceed to consideration of the bill after a final vote on their FY17 National Defense Authorization Act. If cloture is invoked, it will be considered as having been invoked at 10 PM on Monday, June 13.

Labor HHS Education

The Senate Appropriations Committee marked up their $161.9B FY17 Labor HHS Education spending bill in subcommittee and full committee this week. The bill would cut spending by $270M from FY16 enacted levels and $2B below the President’s FY17 budget request. The Committee voted 29 to 1 to approve the measure. The Department of Health and Human Services would receive $ 76.9B, a $1.4B increase above FY16, while within HHS, the National Institutes of Health would receive $34B, an increase of $2B above FY16. The Department of Labor would receive $12B, $134M below FY16, and the Department of Education budget would drop by $220M to $67.8B. The spending bill does not attempt to block the Labor Department’s recently finalized overtime rule.

Senate FY17 Labor HHS Education Appropriations Bill Text:

https://www.congress.gov/114/bills/s3040/BILLS-114s3040pcs.pdf

Senate FY17 Labor HHS Education Appropriations Report Language:

https://www.congress.gov/114/crpt/srpt274/CRPT-114srpt274.pdf

Senate Majority Summary FY17 Labor HHS Appropriations Bill:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/fy2017-labor-hhs-and-education-appropriations-bill-cleared-for-senate-consideration

Senate Minority Summary FY17 Labor HHS Appropriations Bill:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/fy17-lhhs-full-committee-markup-bill-summary

Zika Virus Funding Conference

The Senate voted to go to conference this week on a spending bill that includes funding for the Zika virus as well as FY17 funding for the Transportation HUD (THUD) spending bill. Ten Senate Republicans and nine Senate Democrats were appointed as conferees. For Republicans, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Sens. Susan Collins, Mark Kirk, Lisa Murkowski, John Hoeven, John Boozman, Shelley Moore Capito, Thad Cochran, Roy Blunt and Lindsey Graham will be on the committee. For Democrats, Minority Leader Harry Reid and Sens. Jon Tester, Patty Murray, Tom Udall, Brian Schatz, Tammy Baldwin, Chris Murphy, Barbara Mikulski and Patrick Leahy will be on the committee. The House named its conferees last month, but didn’t include the THUD bill when it voted to go to conference. Conference discussions will begin next week. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) said that he doesn’t expect a conference report to be produced before Friday. The Senate approved $1.1B for the Zika virus, while the House passed $622M with offsets.

FY16 vs. FY17 302(b) Allocations

*Includes Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding.

FY17 Appropriations

House

The House will take up its FY17 Legislative Branch spending bill on the floor next week, but will employ a structured rule for the measure in order to have more control over the amendment process. Speaker Ryan signaled before the Memorial Day recess that the floor procedures for future spending bills would be less open due to contentious amendments slowing down or, in the case of the FY17 Energy and Water spending bill, stopping the process. The Legislative Branch appropriations bill is already causing some consternation among Democrats by the inclusion of report language that directs the Library of Congress to use the term “illegal alien” instead of “unauthorized immigrants” or “non citizens.”

Senate

The Senate has managed to pass three of the 12 annual appropriations bills, and has five more ready to go to the floor. Next week, they are poised to consider the FY17 Defense spending bill after completing action on the FY17 National Defense Authorization Act. In committee, they will mark up the FY17 Labor HHS Education bill in subcommittee on Tuesday and full committee on Thursday.

Zika Virus Funding

Even during the recess Republican and Democratic leaders kept trading barbs over emergency funding to combat the mosquito-borne Zika virus. Speaker Ryan called out Democrats in an email saying that there is no funding shortage and there has never been one. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) responded with the number of confirmed Zika cases in the U.S. Over on the Senate side, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) promised to act on the Zika issue quickly, while Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said that Democrats will force Republicans to vote again against full funding for the Zika virus.

To recap where we currently stand, the President requested $1.9B from Congress in February for fighting the Zika virus. The House passed a $622M Zika supplemental appropriations with offsets of $352.1M of unused money for fighting the Ebola outbreak and $270M in other unused funding for the Department of Health and Human Services. And the Senate passed a bill with $1.1B in Zika emergency funding. The House and Senate now need to conference the two measures. Before the recess, the House voted 233 to 180 for the rule allowing them to go to conference with the Senate. In addition to the overall funding level (the Senate appropriated $1.1B), one of the bigger issues conferees will have to address is whether or not the emergency funding requires a “pay for” or “offset.” The House justified its lower funding level saying that additional aid would come as part of the regular FY17 appropriations process. The Senate now needs to agree to go to conference.